This invention relates to end effectors manipulated by robotic arms and, more particularly, to an end effector capable of applying a clamping force while drilling, sensing the surface of the work piece to accommodate variations in distance, removing metal chips, delivering a spray mist of lubricant to a drill tip, and employing photogrammetry position targeting.
In a traditional manufacturing process, manipulation and processing of products are typically accomplished manually by workers. In the case of modem aircraft manufacturing, this manual manipulation and processing frequently includes manually drilling a multitude of holes through materials such as titanium and the like. The accuracy of these holes is highly dependent upon the skill of the worker. It is also frequently necessary to prepare these holes with countersunk sections to enable a fastener to lie generally flush with the material surface. To this end, it is necessary to maintain high tolerances and repeatability of drill depth in such applications. As can be appreciated, such work is extremely dependent upon the skill of the worker and also requires enormous amounts of worker endurance. Accordingly, there exists a need in the relevant art to provide an end effector capable of expeditiously drilling numerous highly accurate fastener holes in a part.
Moreover, as mentioned above, aircraft manufacturing requires high tolerances to be maintained to ensure that the aircraft is able to withstand the rigors of flight. To this end, it is necessary to ensure the depth and location of fastener holes are predictable and accurate, irrespective of the actual positioning of the part to be drilled relative to the drilling apparatus. Accordingly, there exists a need in the relevant art to provide an end effector capable of drilling numerous fastener holes within high tolerances.
Still further, titanium is frequently used in the manufacturing of aircraft. As is known to those skilled in the art, titanium is a very strong and lightweight material particularly well suited for use in structurally demanding applications. However, due to the strength characteristics of titanium, it is often necessary to provide a lubricating fluid to the working tool in an attempt to extend the useful life of the working tool. Accordingly, there exists a need in the relevant art to provide an end effector having a self-contained lubricating system.
Accordingly, it is a principal object of the present invention to provide a drilling end effector capable of expeditiously drilling numerous fastener holes in an aircraft.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a drilling end effector capable of drilling numerous fastener holes within high tolerances.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a drilling end effector having a self-contained lubricating system.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a drilling end effector that is not susceptible to the shortcomings of the prior art methods.
The above and other objects are provided by a drilling end effector in accordance with preferred embodiment of the present invention. Specifically, the end effector includes a platform and a motor coupled to the platform for driving a drilling member. A motor housing is coupled to the platform and includes a plurality of photogrammetry targets secured thereto. The photogrammetry targets are oriented so as to be readily detectable by a photogrammetry sensor for determining the orientation of the end effector and corresponding drilling member. A pressure foot member and pneumatic cylinders are operably coupled to the platform such that the pneumatic cylinders maintain a contstant pressure upon the pressure foot member to provide material clamp up. A depth control device is also provided for accurately controlling the depth of the drilling member and preventing further drilling.